Category: Israel

Mahmoud Abbas is the President of the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). Abbas gave a two-hour in Ramallah – located in Judea-Samaria (West Bank to Arabs and much of the globe believing Israel is illegally occupying Arab land) – in response to President Trump notifying the world the U.S. Embassy is moving from Tel Aviv to Israel’s Capital City Jerusalem.

As you can guess, Abbas was less than pleased. The speech was chock full of historical revisionism and blatant lies pertaining Israel’s homeland and the existence of the fake people known as Palestinians. Arab domination of the Jewish Homeland didn’t begin until the mid-600s AD (yup, I’m a Christian preferring Anno Domini over Common Era – C.E.).

In order to get a better concept of the Promised Land’s legacy, here are a few titles to examine ending with a 9:44 video:

A short video that summarizes 4000+ years of invasions, conquests and changes in the Land of Israel.

By Ronnie Halibard

Learn how this tiny land over the past 4,000 years has been invaded and settled by numerous nations and how Jerusalem holds the distinction of being the most conquered city in history.

Jewish History in a Flash engages curious minds in the study of Jewish history. Our unique innovative educational methodologies are accessible via exciting and interactive live multimedia lectures, or online videos and app courses for independent study.

Mahmoud Abbas’ two-hour address to the central committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization was the diplomatic equivalent of giving the finger to Israel, the US and peace prospects.

The speech was expected to articulate the Palestinian leadership’s response to Trump’s Jerusalem declaration and threatened cuts of aid for refugees.

But given how long the talk was, it must have been a challenge for reporters to focus on sorting out the “news” from the “rambling.” Indeed, the PA president rejected US mediation, blamed Israel for the “death” of the Oslo accords, and dropped tidbits such as someone offering the eastern Jerusalem neighborhood of Abu Dis to become the capital of a Palestinian state. (Abbas didn’t say who made the offer.)

But there was a bigger picture that the mainstream media snoozed through. What most journalists would consider the boring, long-winded digressions were actually part of a bigger pattern of historical revisionism and rejection of any place for the Jews in the Mideast.

Sign HonestReporting’s petitionto the Foreign Press Association in Israel demanding reporters and editors give a fuller picture of Palestinian rejectionism and refusal to recognize Israel’s right to exist.

The Speech

The Ramallah audience of PLO cadres, VIPs and the foreign press was regaled with Abbas’ theories of how Israel was founded — not by Jews — but by European “colonialists,” with plans going as far back as Oliver Cromwell in 1653. He accused Israel of sending drugs to Palestinian kids. He ridiculed US Ambassador Nikki Haley’s high heels.

And Abbas fabricated a quote to claim that Theodor Herzl, the father of modern Zionism, sought to exterminate Palestinians.

“We must wipe out the Palestinians from Palestine so that Palestine will be a land without a people for a people without a land.”

Abbas also claimed among other things, that the Jews of Europe chose to remain and die at the hands of the Nazis, that Jews from Iraq and Yemen were brought to Israel against their will, and that Israel was formed as “a colonial project that has nothing to do with Judaism” to safeguard European interests.

The PA chief also hurled an epithet at President Donald Trump, saying in Arabic, Yekhreb Beitak, which means “May God destroy your home.” A Palestinian media professional explained to me that home refers not just to the physical house, but the household — its people and possessions. It’s a term used when two people are in a dispute, and although Arabs may use the term somewhat casually among themselves, it’s not a line one would use in a diplomatic setting. That would explain why the Associated Press called it a “jarring” language.

It’s not the first time Abbas twisted history for his own purposes. His doctoral thesis, written as a student in Moscow, argued that the killed “only” one million Jews, that the Zionist leaders collaborated with the Nazis, and that Jewish leaders inflated the Holocaust’s death toll to six million for their own advantage.

But the overall thrust of the speech was to erase Jewish ties to the land of Israel.

“Testing his audience’s attention, Mr. Abbas also gave a lengthy history lecture reaching back to the 17th century, saying that Oliver Cromwell had first proposed shipping European Jews to the Holy Land, before tracing the beginning of Zionism to what he called the 19th-century journalist and activist Theodor Herzl’s efforts to “wipe out Palestinians from Palestine.”

“This is a colonial enterprise that has nothing to do with Jewishness,” Mr. Abbas said. “The Jews were used as a tool under the concept of the promised land — call it whatever you want. Everything has been made up.”

Indeed, Abbas has made everything up.

Can you imagine the headlines if an Israeli head of state denied the existence of the Palestinian people? Or fabricated quotes?

While I didn’t see any news coverage of the speech in The Guardian, an Ian Black commentary fretted over how the speech would play into the hands of right-wing Israelis. And if I didn’t know any better, I’d say the Irish Independent took Associated Press reports one and two and scrubbed them.

Palestinians may see Abbas as defiantly throwing down the gauntlet while Israelis see Abbas on the verge of imploding.

If there’s going to be peace, we need the press to step up and enlighten us on what Mahmoud Abbas really stands for.

Sign HonestReporting’s petitionto the Foreign Press Association in Israel demanding reporters and editors give a fuller picture of Palestinian rejectionism and refusal to recognize Israel’s right to exist.

HonestReporting monitors the news for bias, inaccuracy, or other breach of journalistic standards in coverage of the Arab-Israeli conflict. It also facilitates accurate reporting for foreign journalists covering the region. HonestReporting is not aligned with any government or political party or movement.

HonestReporting believes that a fully informed public is essential to progress and understanding in conflict resolution. It is not enough to correct inaccurate reporting and expose breaches of journalistic ethics. HonestReporting, through its MediaCentral project, provides support services for journalists based in or visiting Israel, the Palestinian territories, and the region to insure the free flow of information.

HonestReporting’s work serves the public interest by fighting misinformation, such as computer manipulations of images that give people a false impression of the conflict. At the same time, it provides agenda-free services to reporters, including translation services and access to news makers to enable them to provide a fuller picture of the situation. Honestreporting has over 140,000 subscribers and its MediaCentral project handles over 1,000 inquiries from journalists each year.

Justin Smith writes about the obvious fact that Leftists and Muslim apologists have been in denial for decades. Namely, that Jerusalem is the Capital city of the Jewish State of Israel. Whiners cry recognizing Jerusalem as the Capital city will harm or end the peace process. Just as Justin Smith correctly points out, “What peace process?”

Jerusalem is the undivided capital of Israel, according to President Donald Trump, who declared it so on December 6th 2017, rewarding our close ally Israel and correcting a historical injustice, although any sane person already understood this fact and the historical record removes all doubt. President Trump’s declaration sounded the death knell on the seven decades long world delusion that Muslims and the ideology of Islam somehow have any claim to any part of Jerusalem, which is a critical component of the mythical “palestinians’” simple ploy to undermine and ultimately destroy Israel, a sovereign Jewish state in the middle of the Islamic world, which is viewed in their eyes as an insult to Islam.

President Trump was cautioned against this move, by Defense Secretary James Mattis and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who feared it would enrage the Islamic world. While it did result in an immediate blowback, President Trump is convinced that this will aid the peace process in the long term; and even if this is not the case, God will bless him and America for his courageous and righteous decision.

Representative John Culberson (R-TX) told ‘The Hill’: “America should never change our foreign policy based on an assumption that we’re going to offend a group of Islamic radicals. America should always do the right thing and stand by our allies, and America has no stronger ally on earth than the people of Israel.”

Justifying his decision, President Trump mentioned the Parliament, Supreme Court and the prime minister’s home in West Jerusalem, as locations within the Old City, including Al Aqsa mosque. A bright, glaring focal point, he made no mention of any Palestinian rights to East Jerusalem.

Today, the Jewish Temple Mount is the third holiest site in Islam, behind Saudi Arabia’s Mecca and Medina. Muslims believe once they claim a piece of land, it belongs to Islam forever.

However, there has never been a “Palestinian” state with Jerusalem as its capital, or a palestinian language or culture. There was not any such thing as a “palestinian” people, prior to 1948. They were ethnic Arabs and Muslims, who created the myth as a political tool to use against an unwanted Jewish state in their midst.

For the past three thousand years, since 1000 B.C., there has been an uninterrupted Jewish presence in the city of Jerusalem, which is the religious and cultural home for the Jewish people and their historic capital. Jews, wherever they are in the world, face Jerusalem when they pray, and each year at Passover, their hopeful prayer is recited, “Next year in Jerusalem”.

The Bible mentions the City of David, Jerusalem, more than 600 times, and Jerusalem is mentioned hundreds of times in the Prophets (Nevi’im) and Writings (Ketuvim). The Psalms 137:5 state, “If I forget thee Jerusalem, may my right hand forget its skill“. Out of all the cities in the world, the Bible only calls on us to pray for the welfare of Jerusalem, but not once is Jerusalem mentioned in the Koran.

In Mohammed’s lifetime, Jerusalem was an unimportant city in the Byzantine Empire and a Christian city without a single mosque. The Al Aqsa mosque is a conquest mosque [Tov Rose&CBN] built atop the ruins of the Church of Saint Mary of Justinian. And, although Islamic tradition says Mohammed ascended into Heaven from Al Aqsa mosque, there is no record of Mohammed having ever been to Jerusalem.

President Trump rightfully noted: “This is nothing more or less than a recognition of reality. It is also the right thing to do. It’s something that has to be done.”

Many professional “peace experts” contend that President Trump’s capital idea will kill any chance for a negotiated settlement between the Palestinians and Israel. Palestinian Authority president-for-life Mahmoud Abbas, an old terrorist himself, characterized the move as America’s “declaration of withdrawal” from the “peace process”.

What peace process?

For nearly a decade, Abbas has refused to engage in direct talks, despite Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s open invitation, but no negotiation is better than the bad faith negotiations of the Palestinians. In 1993, under Yasser Arafat, they accepted extremely generous deals in the Oslo Accords andright away committed wave after wave of terrorist attacks, in an effort to force more concessions from Israel and the West.

And now, President Trump has sent the unmistakable message that murder will not be rewarded. No longer will violence over Jerusalem be tolerated.

Calls for Muslims to engage in “three days of rage” immediately sounded over mosque loudspeakers in Gaza, and hundreds moved on the Israeli border, after Trump’s speech, throwing stones and chanting, “We don’t need empty words, we need stones and Kalasnikovs”, while other clashes broke out in Hebron and Bethlehem. Thirty-one Palestinians were wounded on Thursday, and Friday after prayers was like all other Fridays, with the usual protests and anger.

The Palestinians don’t want to peacefully coexist beside Israel, in a two-state solution. They seek a one state solution and an Islamic State that exists in the place of Israel, and they cling to their fantasy of eradicating the Jewish state. To achieve this, they have created a campaign to revise history, and they attempt to erase the undeniable Jewish connection and birthright to Jerusalem.

Reprehensibly, on May 2nd of this year, near Israel’s Independence Day, the U.N.’s cultural body, UNESCO, passed a series of resolutions that stated Israel hasn’t any legal or historical rights anywhere in Jerusalem. Largely comprised of an anti-Israel majority, the votes against the resolution came from the U.S., U.K., Italy, Germany, Ukraine, the Netherlands, Lithuania, Greece, Paraguay and Togo.

In the moments after the vote passed, Israel’s ambassador to UNESCO, Carmel Shama-Hacohen, draped in a large Israeli flag, addressed the meeting: “Even now, after this miserable vote, this blue and white flag is flying high above the Temple Mount and throughout Israel’s eternal capital city, Jerusalem, waving in the wind, saying to all ‘here we are, and we are here to stay'”.

Denying reality is how this game has long been played. For seventy years the world has pretended that Jerusalem wasn’t the capital of Israel. We even witnessed the U.N. become the poster child for the absurd, when it declared East Jerusalem “occupied territory”, on December 23rd 2016, because of President Obama’s anti-Israel sentiment. This advanced the insane and ignoble fantasy that, as a matter of international law, the Western Wall, and the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem too, really belongs to the Palestinians. President Donald Trump just put an end to their game, with his acknowledgement of fact and his brave act and moral courage.

By Justin O. Smith

_____________________________

Edited by John R. Houk

All source links as well as text embraced by brackets are by the Editor.

Antisemitism is in a troubling upsurge in America and Europe. If you are a student of history, you should realize the Antisemitism in pre-WWII USA and Europe that reached a zenith with Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany, appears to be history repeating itself in this present time.

The invitation by the Government Press Office to the Foreign Press Corps (please see below) sparked my interest: hearing at the Israeli Parliament titled “Upsurge in Anti-Semitism in the US and Europe” at the initiative of Stand With Us.

SWU

Stand With Us is a 510(c)(3) educational organization that works tirelessly on US campuses and beyond to inform and educate the public about Israel, its past and present. The organization was founded a decade and a half ago in Los Angeles, and the same people who founded it are still at the helm, dedicating their lives to being at the forefront of the Public Diplomacy Front on behalf of the Jewish People.

The organization has grown tremendously, it now has offices throughout the world and a very impressive annual budget. Some of the major donors are based in Los Angeles, providing the necessary fertile ground on which action sprouts, grows and expands. It is absolutely impressive.

In Israel the organization has presence on all university campuses, graduating hundreds of students from its programs every year, training them to be “soldiers on the front lines, ambassadors of the Jewish State of Israel.”

The organization’s current offices in Jerusalem host some 20,000 people a year, yielding them a street sign (close to YMCA):

Stand With Us Office Sign in Jerusalem

I have witnessed the work of Stand With Us first hand since its inception, and I could not resist going to Jerusalem for the hearing by the Knesset Immigration Absorption and Diaspora Affairs Committee. SWU, Knesset, Jerusalem – an irresistible mix!

Ineffective Work

I wanted to know what will be presented, and more interestingly, what might be the reaction. I remember having attended a similar hearing, same venue, same Committee, on 5/17/2011. The subject matter was how does Israel and the Diaspora deal with the “Palestinian Narrative” about the formation of the modern State of Israel. (The years passed, and the situation only deteriorated. Thus, in the report card it is pointed out that Israel is failing in practice in its public diplomacy efforts.)

That meeting was chaired by Danny Danon, today Israel’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations. I was astonished then to see a room full of experts in their respective fields, and yet not one person from the “Diaspora.” And how does a country fight at the Public Diplomacy Front when not a single soldier from the front line is present to report and participate? Think of General Headquarters, completely disconnected from what is happening on the ground.

Committee hearings are dangerous, for they provide a false sense of activity and reassurance, when in reality such crucial and existential subject matters cannot be addressed in a short period of time (usually a couple of hours at most).

BDS

Why is it important to know what is happening on the ground? One could learn a bit about the spread of the “Palestinian Narrative” when, for instance, Bargouti, the “doctoral student from Apartheid University Tel Aviv” came to Los Angeles. He is the founder of the single most successful movement of the 21st Century – other than Daesh (ISIS) – which is commonly known today as “BDS” (Boycott, Divest, Sanction Israel).

Echoes of the strength and success of this movement have even reached the Committee Hearing’s floor as the representative of one of the Government ministries informed all those present how successful its ministry’s cooperation and support of numerous organizations (none of which elects to be known by name) in defeating the BDS movement.

Fantastically and most encouragingly spoken, by a person who thus understands not in what the movement is all about. Given that a ranking Deputy Minister (in charge, under the PM, of Foreign Affairs) repeats the same mantra, saying the obvious that the BDS efforts to harm Israel economically are unsuccessful, there is a basic misunderstanding in Israel about what the BDS movement is all about.

[Blog Editor: Ari doesn’t provide the name of the photo I presumed to “Deputy Minister (in charge, under the PM, of Foreign Affairs)”. I looked the Minister and I think the photo is of Tzipi Hotovely (Haaretz & Wikipedia). But I’m not certain. I am guessing if I am incorrect Ari will send an email pointing out my mistake.]

Let us recall, for a moment, the Mavi Marmara and the Turkish Terrorist Flotilla of Lies. The organizers knew they are unlikely to break the blockade by Egypt and Israel over Gaza. (Remember, the naval blockade was designed, inter alia, to prevent armament and experts from Iran to arrive en masse.)

But the calculation by the organizers – as reported by anti-terrorism expert Steve Emerson – was clear: If Israel lets us through, we win, and if Israel tries to harm us, we win!

Likewise with the BDS movement – it is a win-win situation. Economic warfare is just a byproduct. If it happens, it is a bonus. But this is not the intention of the BDS movement, that was designed to spread lies and deceit, repeat them often enough and create not only confusion but a parallel reality which the world will assume is truth, the whole truth and nothing by the truth.

It seems that Israelis have not yet internalized this threat. For them, the BDS movement does not achieve its namesake (“Boycott, Divest, Sanction”) so it must be a failure (i.e. Israel has the upper hand).

* Israel is Apartheid (one needs not even know what is Apartheid, it sounds “evil” enough). Note also the equal sign: Israel is the equivalent of something horrible, something that sounds very bad and distasteful.

* Israeli soldiers are the New Nazis.

* Gaza is an open air ghetto, its people being slowly starved to death by Israel.

* Israel steals the water of the Palestinians.

* Israel waters cotton and banana plantations (notorious for their high consumption of water) with drinking water.

* Israeli settlers contaminate the environment by discharging waste in the open.

* Israelis harvest organs of young Palestinian males and throw the men then, still half alive, like garbage.

* Israeli soldiers do not rape Palestinian women, since they view them as sub-human.

* Israel has developed a super large cat, that targets only Muslim Arabs in East Jerusalem.

* Israel demolishes 24,000 houses (of Muslim Arabs) every year.

* The Settlements are the root-cause of all evil.

And it continues on and on, ad nauseam, to the point that we start believing all these blood libels and feel the urge to go and correct the wrongs by the Jews, rid the world of that problem once and for all and bring peace and tranquility and an end to all the world’s problems with a hand wave: JUST ELIMINATE THE JEWS! They are imperialists-colonialists-zionists – they must return to their countries of origin, for they stole and occupy a land that was never theirs. They are pigs and apes!

This is the real threat of the BDS movement, that feeds from and thrives upon pure hatred, the ancient Anti-Semitism. An endless supply of fuel to the chimneys, that one day soon will once again spew ashes into the air, night and day without rest.

Kristallnacht, 2017

Those who have not been exposed to the work on the ground may be alarmed or dismiss the entire description as “right wing extremism” (or, worse as Islamophobia!) But it is sufficient to experience what is happening on college campuses in the USA, in inter-faith meetings and all other opportunities to realize how dangerous the situation, how it prepares the groundswell to action the likes of which the world has experienced some eight decades ago (79 years ago this Thursday and Friday).

We are told: It is not Anti-Semitism, but legitimate criticism of the State, its government and policies. Except, Israel is singled out, and as the allegations and lies sink in, it becomes permissible – even necessary – to act against the perpetrators, those bloody Israelis. From that point, the jump into action is easy, and everything is then excusable, including murder and mayhem. Jewish blood must be spilled to avenge all the wrongdoings by the Jews.

My parents survived the Holocaust. They were young children and did not experience the 30s or Kristallnacht. Remember how it all started: First it was legitimate to burn books. The leap from burning books to burning people was made without an effort and the chimneys did not stop spewing human dust. [Bold Text Blog Editor’s]

All that the BDS movement is doing (and achieving with great strides) is preparing the ground that anything that will happen to the Jews is both warranted and acceptable. The Jews deserve the fate that is in store for them. So was in the past; so in present time.

A Knesset Committee Hearing

I was intrigued this time around to hear what would be reported about the US – an area where I have some limited expertise – and in Europe. Thus, full of energy and anticipation, I ascended unto Jerusalem.

The entire hearing is available on the Knesset website and the Knesset channel (http://main.knesset.gov.il/Activity/committees/Immigration/Pages/CommitteeTVarchive.aspx) [Blog Editor: If you speak English me, you’ll have to use some kind of translator for the Knesset.gov link], and the full transcript will be available (in Hebrew) in a few weeks’ time. In my upcoming column (in print in Los Angeles this week), I point out the main impression of that entire morning: The European ambassadors are taking the subject matter of fighting Anti-Semitism extremely seriously. Each, in his turn, gave a brief overview of his government’s current actions and activities. This was most impressive and reassuring.

[Blog Editor: at this Ari has several photos of his visit to the Knesset Committee in Jerusalem. I am only including the photos presented with a caption.]

The Austrian Ambassador, Martin Weiss, previously the Consul General in LA

The German Ambassador, Dr. Clemens von Goetze

The UK and French (L to R) representatives

MK Dr. Anat Berko

Committee Chair, MK Dr. Avraham Neguise

(In this Apartheid country, there is no differentiation in the skin color of a person; there are Muslim members of the Supreme Court and Arab members of the Knesset; there are Arab doctors and nurses and professors; minorities are protected and enjoy equal rights … only in one place in the entire Middle East and the African continent!)

MK Dr. Nachman Shai (L) with the European Ambassadors of Germany, Austria and the EU

European Action –

Never to Forget

We know that seven decades after the end of WWII, the world has started to forget, to doubt and to raise questions. A day will come, not so distant, when my parents’ generation will no longer be here – the last Survivors of the Holocaust. A young person will ask his smart gadget “tell me what was the Holocaust,” and the answer will be “A sovereign country convened a scientific conference that concluded it was just a Zionist lie to cause the world to acquiesce to the Jews stealing and occupying a land not theirs.” This conference, apparently was then followed by an international competition of cartoons, all belittling and countering the notion of a “holocaust.”

There will be no more Survivors. There will only be doubts.

Thus, standing steadfast and resolute with utter determination is crucial, for otherwise we will succumb to the same notion that “maybe there was no Holocaust” and “maybe it was not really what we are taught” and “maybe there is more hype than reality” in all those stories, for “it cannot be….”

It is quite amazing to see countries like Germany, Austria, France, Great Britain and the European Union taking relentless action, safeguarding the lessons of the Holocaust. Alas, it is exactly Germany, under Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has been a steadfast, true friend of Israel.

Noticeably Absent

There are those, both during the Committee Hearing and afterwards in the media, who tried to politicize and sensationalize the absence of the US Ambassador.

The US neither slumbers nor sleeps in its activities against racism and bigotry of all kinds, and specifically against Anti-Semitism. Actions talk louder than words, and the US Ambassador may have felt there is no need to defend or even present what is so obvious back at home.

Or maybe the Ambassador could not have shown up to a meeting initiated by a NGO in the USA, lest he be seen as promoting the organization.

Whatever the reason, given the presence of his fellow Ambassadors, I felt Ambassador Friedman’s presence would have added and brought balance, since the USA continues to be at the forefront of fighting Anti-Semitism and protecting civil liberties.

Instead, his absence created an opportunity to, once again, attack our President, what has turned to a national pastime since President Trump’s election to the highest office of the land.

The Right of Return Home

Interestingly, during the hearing (luckily after most of the Ambassadors have left), there was some finger pointing whose essence: It is their governments’ responsibility to protect their Jewish citizens. The contrast between the Jewish organizations and the representatives of the different Government Ministries and the European representative was striking. The latter took a few minutes each to give a list of actions being carried out. It was a report of doing. It was a very focused, no-nonsense, most-serious approach to a heavy burden carried. All the while, the Israelis and Jewish participants engaged in a game one may call “passing the Buck.”

The message should have been clear: There is ONE Jewish homeland, it is called Israel. Since its rebirth seventy years ago, Israel has absorbed Jewish immigrants from all over the world:

* Hundreds of thousands who were expelled from the Arab countries who refused to recognize the rebirth of the Jewish State.

* The remnants of the ashes of the Holocaust.

* Later the massive immigration from the former Soviet Union.

* And the Ethiopian immigration.

* They were then followed by the Jews of Venezuela (but they stopped in Miami and in Spain and did not arrive en masse to Israel), and

* The Jews of France who fled France for fear of their lives (one can hear so many people speaking French in Israel, and there are entire cities where the French bought condos for a rainy day).

Jewish refugees and immigrants alike were all absorbed. They all assimilated. They are all one – “Israelis.”

By law, every Jewish person can come home to Israel. It is the shelter and the homeland. One country in the entire world that is a Jewish state and the only homeland of the Jewish people.

Looking Forward

Once, eight decades ago, there was no Israel, just a dream and a yearning to go back, to revive the ancient land.

Today, there is Israel. She has the Israel DEFENSE Forces. She is a member of the family of nations, and she will do all it takes to protect her people, wherever they are.

Things are very different, yet they are so similar. The same trends. The same undercurrents. The same blood libels. The same ancient hatred.

Israel needs to focus and prepare. There will be new waves of immigration, people fleeing due to the rise of Anti-Semitism. This is Israel’s responsibility, not the EU’s, the USA’s or that of any other foreign entity.

All the rest must pay close attention, for maybe we have not learned some lessons of the past: History tends to repeat itself. What is effective against the Jews, is also effective against others – Christians, various minorities and, yes, even Muslims (in the hand of Muslims). When we do not stand up and take action when someone else is being targeted, we may find ourselves being targeted without anyone standing up to protect and defend us!

(Below you will find an article about Christian persecution in Muslim countries – “We are going to burn you alive.”)

The Committee Hearing took place just before the 100 year mark of the Balfour Declaration and a week before the 79th anniversary of Kristallnacht. Let us remember, and let us not sit idle as evil, once again, is rearing its ugly head in preparation for the blood it can only smell!

Tonight, Sunday, 11/5/2017, Israel’s tenth President Rivlin met with leaders of Spain’s Jewish community and here are some of his remarks, most pertinent to the discussion carried herein.

President Rivlin: “We must not surrender to anti-Semitism, we must fight it. I am pleased that the Spanish government is taking steps in legislation and enforcement against this ugly phenomenon. We must not be ashamed of or hide our identity. We will fight these challenges together.”

“We love and respect every Jew, wherever they are, but you will be welcome always should you choose to come to your home in the State of Israel.”

“The State of Israel today operates an extensive network to combat anti-Semitism disguised as the delegitimization of Israel, to fight hatred of Jews disguised as a criticism of Israeli Government policy: these bodies are at your disposal, they are also here for you.”

“We are brothers, let us stand together.”

“We are together in the war against anti-Semitism, and today we are stronger than ever.” The President went on to note that the campaign to boycott and impose sanctions on Israel was, “an expression of anti-Semitism”.

So let us give thanks that there is Israel – for the Jewish People and for the entire world, and may we all say

The Knesset Immigration, Absorption and Diaspora AffairsCommittee will, on Monday, 30 October 2017, at 10:00, in the Knesset Negev Hall, at the initiative of StandWithUs, hold a discussion on the upsurge of anti-Semitism in the US and Europe. The committee will – inter alia – hear new testimony on recent incidents on US college campuses, from students who have specially come for this meeting. European ambassadors will also discuss the actions of their respective governments in combatting anti-Semitism.

Attending the discussion will be the ambassadors from the EU, Germany and Austria, and representatives from the UK, France and Russia, as well as representatives from various government ministries, relevant NGOs and Jewish community organizations.

The meeting is open to coverage upon prior coordination with Knesset Immigration, Absorption and Diaspora Affairs Committee Spokesman Yigal Amitai at 050-6238671 or yigala@knesset.gov.il.

#

[Blog Editor: At this point Ari included several other articles relating to the Trump Administration and Antisemitism by Ari Lieberman; the Gatestone Institute on Muslim persecution of Christians by Raymond Ibrahim; a Middle East Quarterly relating to the Balfour Declaration; an article from the Jewish Journal by Judea Pearl also on the Balfour Declaration; a load of source links; and Palestine Solidarity Campaign smearing the Holocaust and the Balfour Declaration from “RichardMillet’s Blog”. All are worthy of a cross post. I am going to share some but I’m not sure if all or a few chosen.]

Ari Bussel is Vice President of Operations at Saybrex International, a privately held family business specializing in the distribution of fine wines and spirits. He is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the company and has held various positions in the company since 1993.

Prior to joining Saybrex, Mr. Bussel served as First Lieutenant in the Center for Systems Analysis at General Headquarters of the Israel Defense Forces, where he led the implementation of the Logistics War Doctrine in the Computerized Wargame Program.

Mr. Bussel is involved in a variety of philanthropic and civic activities. Mr. Bussel completed the Team Beverly Hills Leadership Program and served on the Environmental Sustainability Topic Committee of the City of Beverly Hills. He was a member of the Steering Committees of former Beverly Hills Mayor MeraLee Goldman and the current Beverly Hills City Treasurer, the Hon. Eliot Finkel. Mr. Bussel also completed and participated in the Community Emergency Response Training Program of the City of Beverly Hills as well as the Crisis Response Team of the Maple Counseling Center.

Mr. Bussel was among the founding members and served on the boards of Gen. Shimon Erem’s Israel Christian Nexus, the Western Region of Friends of Israel Firefighters and the Israel Institute for Alternative Energy Advancement. He completed the Salvin Leadership Program of the Anti-Defamation League.

Mr. Bussel writes regularly. For the past decade, his weekly columns appeared in print in Israel Jewish Life, Shalom LA, Muslim World Today and Israeli Week. Mr. Bussel’s articles appear on numerous websites, including Canada Free Press, Free Republic, NewsBlaze, SlantRight and OpEdNews. He is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club.

Mr. Bussel received a Master of Science in Operations Research from Stanford … READTHE REST

This is the second post on Ari Bussel’s experience at the first Christian Media Summit in Jerusalem October 15-18, 2017. Note though this is Ari’s third submission. I did not post the second submission. This first post can be read HERE.

The Gospel of Jerusalem – Last but not Least (First Christian Media Summit) Part 2 (on this blog)

By Ari Bussel

Sent 10/28/2017 10:55 AM

Dear Friends of Zion and Jerusalem,

Dear Colleagues in the Christian Media,

It is said, that we save the best for last.

Indeed, take a peek, and see some of us seated at the President’s welcoming room.

The staff person who granted us permission and stayed to supervise us explained, that the President sits on the right, the other head of state on the left.

So we took turns taking pictures, and ever since, I was trying to identify this very room in press pictures of visitors of dignitaries.

It turns out that Israel is a hub on the global map, and numerous world leaders arrive here regularly, possibly more than to any other destination around the world. No wonder we were only granted an hour, and were requested to put our phones away (the President does not like it apparently).

None of the pictures from press releases of the last few days is from this room, which leads me to believe that “we have seen nothing yet,” and that there are numerous other receiving halls under different names and guises in the President’s Mansion.

One thing I would greatly urge the organizers for future summits is the following request:

If only the President had spent some time greeting us individually, the representatives of the various Christian media outlets from more than three dozen countries around the world.

The President could have taken a few minutes to pass through the center and side aisles and say individual “SHALOM” to us. Here Frank who gave him a book, there Susan with her Children’s book – Why is Great-Grandma so Sad? (both books about the Holocaust). And we all wanted a picture – a picture with the President of the Jewish State of Israel!

This would have been more memorable likely than the entire speech, that was disseminated to the foreign press about an hour after it took place. The speech we could read, but to meet the Tenth President of the Jewish State of Israel is a different story altogether!

It is the personal touch – Israel saying “THANK YOU, DEAR FRIEND.

THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO!

THANK YOU FOR WALKING IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE ALMIGHTY

THANK YOU FOR SPENDING THE TIME AND EFFORT TO COME HERE – MANY ON THEIR VERY FIRST VISIT

[Blog Editor: Not all emailed are displayed due to repetitiveness. Sorry Ari.]

At the President’s Mansion, Jerusalem, Israel

Note the official symbol of the State of Israel – in the center the Menorah with seven lamps, on either side an olive branch and the word Israel underneath (chosen and entered into law in 1949)

Working on the Israeli-Syrian border, extending help to the real refugees and needy of the Syrian civil-war:

Israel’s First President, Chaim Weizmann

Israel’s Ninth President, Shimon Peres, a dreamer

Mike Evans and the Dutch contingency

“We knew President Navon”

Dreaming, thinking big and doing what no one has done before

Now looking into the future

For – as my father says – it is always the “repeat order,” not the initial placement of a product that counts!

“A Blessing, I will lead us in a blessing!”

“Cousins” from across the Pond – US and UK

The artworks adorning the walls are indeed “museum quality:” They are on loan from the Israel Museum

Line up, please, quickly, get ready:

Note the nine-lamp Chanukah Menorah on the right, and compare with the Menorah on the State emblem (seven-lamp – as was inside the Temple and whose work was considered more important than the sacrifices)

2 And he said unto me: ‘What seest thou?’ And I said: ‘I have seen, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and its seven lamps thereon; there are seven pipes, yea, seven, to the lamps, which are upon the top thereof;

3 and two olive-trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.’

(to be continued … [Ari Bussel])

_______________

Blog Editor: Ari wrote “to be continued”. That is a maybe if the next email submission is as erudite as this one rather than repetitive. Just in case, you can email Ari and I am confident he will send you all the updates related to his experience at the First Christian Media Summit:bussel@me.com

Ari Bussel is Vice President of Operations at Saybrex International, a privately held family business specializing in the distribution of fine wines and spirits. He is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the company and has held various positions in the company since 1993.

Prior to joining Saybrex, Mr. Bussel served as First Lieutenant in the Center for Systems Analysis at General Headquarters of the Israel Defense Forces, where he led the implementation of the Logistics War Doctrine in the Computerized Wargame Program.

Mr. Bussel is involved in a variety of philanthropic and civic activities. Mr. Bussel completed the Team Beverly Hills Leadership Program and served on the Environmental Sustainability Topic Committee of the City of Beverly Hills. He was a member of the Steering Committees of former Beverly Hills Mayor MeraLee Goldman and the current Beverly Hills City Treasurer, the Hon. Eliot Finkel. Mr. Bussel also completed and participated in the Community Emergency Response Training Program of the City of Beverly Hills as well as the Crisis Response Team of the Maple Counseling Center.

Mr. Bussel was among the founding members and served on the boards of Gen. Shimon Erem’s Israel Christian Nexus, the Western Region of Friends of Israel Firefighters and the Israel Institute for Alternative Energy Advancement. He completed the Salvin Leadership Program of the Anti-Defamation League.

Mr. Bussel writes regularly. For the past decade, his weekly columns appeared in print in Israel Jewish Life, Shalom LA, Muslim World Today and Israeli Week. Mr. Bussel’s articles appear on numerous websites, including Canada Free Press, Free Republic, NewsBlaze, SlantRight and OpEdNews. He is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club.

Mr. Bussel received a Master of Science in Operations Research from Stanford …READ THE REST

The annual Christian Media Summit conference is taking place this week in Jerusalem. The four-day summit brings together a select group of top Christian media broadcasters, publishers, journalists, and communicators from around the world for discussion and study on topics related to Israel and the Christian world.

The Ministry of Jerusalem Affairs and Heritage, together with the Government Press Office (GPO), helped to organize the event.

Mark Jenkins, the President of the Words of Visionary Missionaries, said at the conference that the delegates at the conference were “people who certainly have a heart for Israel. These are people who are typically Israel advocates in the United States.”

James Smith, the Communications Vice President of the National Religious Broadcasters, said that the conference is “an attempt to help Christians understand why Israel matters politically, from a security standpoint, from a historical standpoint, and why Christians should understand that, and should support Israel’s interests.” (Watch:Christian media leaders explain why Israel matters; By Yoni Kempinski; Arutz Sheva 7 –INN; 10/16/17 21:38)

For the past four days, I was dreaming. I had to pinch myself, but was afraid to do so, lest I be awakened from a most wonderful dream.

I went to sleep every night and awoke early the next morning (ready for a magnificent Israeli breakfast) and turned toward the Temple Mount, for Jews everywhere around the world turn toward Jerusalem in prayer, and when in Jerusalem, we turn toward the Temple Mount, and when there, we turn to the Holy of Holies.

I breathed in, enough air to fill the lungs to capacity, and refused to exhale. I wanted to cherish the moment, which lasted four magnificent days, so that it will remain, an endless source of light and energy to be used forevermore – at a time of great sorrow or dire condition or great peril; at times of great joy and celebration.

For what we have uncovered together was nothing short than the essence of God the Almighty, residing among His people at the place of His choosing – right here in Zion Jerusalem. It was a gift of a lifetime, the culmination of years in the making and the source of all time to come.

So when the time came to say goodbye and for each of us to leave back – to the States, UK, Holland, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Hungary, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Indonesia, Philippines, Australia, Guatemala, Nepal, Korea and to more than two dozen other countries – I simply refused! Alas, each of us had to take a plane, but we know that the friendship crafted during this First Christian Media Summit will be with us, for it is indestructible.

2 Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing; {N}
then said they among the nations: ‘The LORD hath done great things with these.’

ג הִגְדִּיל יְהוָה, לַעֲשׂוֹת עִמָּנוּ– הָיִינוּ שְׂמֵחִים.

3 The LORD hath done great things with us; we are rejoiced.

Praise and Song to the Almighty

2017 is a most significant year to Israel and the Jewish people. The year marks:

* the 120th anniversary of the First Zionist Congress in Basel,

* the 100th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration,

* the 70th year of the UN Partition Plan,

* the 50th anniversary of the Six Day War,

* and 50 years for the Reunification of Jerusalem.

In Los Angeles, the City of Angels saluted the City of God in a series of events that took place earlier this year. Here is some background material we prepared for the press that you might find useful:

In 2017, and for the past 50 years, there is only one place in the entire Middle East and the African continent where freedom of religion is paramount, and people as well as holy sites flourish, as they are protected by law and by practice.

This place is Jerusalem, Israel’s capital from Biblical to present times. For two thousand years, the Jewish people yearned to return to their homeland and to the holy city of Jerusalem.

Here, Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac as a test of his loyalty to God the Almighty; Jacob dreamed of the ladder with angels ascending and descending; King David conquered the city and made it his capital, bringing the Ark of the Covenant here; His son King Solomon built the First Temple, a magnificent marvel; the First and Second Temple were then destroyed, but a portion of the Western Wall remains to this very day; and here is where Jesus walked in the Way of Suffering, Via Dolorosa, was crucified and then resurrected.

The Prophet Isaiah instructed and highlighted (66:10): “Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad with her, all who love her!” the city “Jerusalem that is built as a city which is joined together” (Psalms 122:3) and which is remembered and constantly highlighted “If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth if I remember thee not, if I set not Jerusalem above my chiefest joy” (Psalms 137:5-6).

It is in this spirit, 50 years to the date from when the Israeli flag was raised over the Temple Mount, that Christians and Jews and other minorities will gather and declare:

There is no other place like Jerusalem, Jerusalem of Gold, the City of God!

Throughout the Middle East and Africa Christians and other minorities are being raped, sold to slavery, executed en masse (including Muslims in the hands of other Muslims) and murdered, and holy places (churches, mosques, etc.) are desecrated, burned to the ground and destroyed. Jerusalem is the only place where freedom of religion and protection of religious rights and institutions is by law and practice.

Jerusalem is the only place that for the past 50 years church bells can be heard, as well as the Muezzin call to prayer. Jews walk freely, living their daily lives side by side other minorities. Jerusalem is the only place in the entire region and beyond where the Christian population experiences a net positive growth; where minorities feel safe and welcome.

This is the theme being highlighted, celebrating a Jubilee of humanity flourishing.

###

We celebrated Jerusalem in a night of Song and Praise (Shir ve Hallel) to God the Almighty. We called it Jerusalem of Gold. We rejoiced and gave thanks. We stood together – Israelis, Jews, Russians, Iranians, Armenians, Korean, …; Christians of all streams; Latinos; whites and blacks; men and women; old and young; and we were blessed. (There are 18 clips available for viewing:

The song “Yerushalaim” by Moshe Halimi, singer: Esther Porshain, directed by: Lavi P. Enterprises Ltd. – Publishing House/Productions. Please make your own video clip about Jerusalem, based on this song and send it to us. the best one will win a prise (laviph@gmail.com)]

Also, Mayor Nir Barkat’s office prepared the following three-minute segment to communities around the world, Voices of Jerusalem. Please use it freely!

Psalms 48 tells us that our Lord is Great, and it directs us to take what we have seen and heard, the Glory of God the Almighty. It tells us to go ‘round Zion Jerusalem, study and learn it in detail, and tell what we have learned and experienced – tell LeDor Acharon (to the last generation):

ב גָּדוֹל יְהוָה וּמְהֻלָּל מְאֹד– בְּעִיר אֱלֹהֵינוּ, הַר-קָדְשׁוֹ.

2 Great is the LORD, and highly to be praised, in the city of our God, His holy mountain,

14 Mark ye well her ramparts, traverse her palaces; that ye may tell it to the generation following.

We have been driven inside and around the City, we went under the ground and emerged on the Temple Mount, we circled the City from outside, we went to her tops, climbed her hills and mountains, and we descended down into the earth underneath her. We saw excavations and new discoveries, and we stood in awe under the magnificent skies, at a place closest to God; and we said a prayer

a prayer with our entire body and soul

for it is here that all had started – the very Creation –

where the past comes alive

giving us meaning and a purpose

and it is here, in Zion Jerusalem, that the fulfillment of our very being

Ari Bussel is Vice President of Operations at Saybrex International, a privately held family business specializing in the distribution of fine wines and spirits. He is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the company and has held various positions in the company since 1993.

Prior to joining Saybrex, Mr. Bussel served as First Lieutenant in the Center for Systems Analysis at General Headquarters of the Israel Defense Forces, where he led the implementation of the Logistics War Doctrine in the Computerized Wargame Program.

Mr. Bussel is involved in a variety of philanthropic and civic activities. Mr. Bussel completed the Team Beverly Hills Leadership Program and served on the Environmental Sustainability Topic Committee of the City of Beverly Hills. He was a member of the Steering Committees of former Beverly Hills Mayor MeraLee Goldman and the current Beverly Hills City Treasurer, the Hon. Eliot Finkel. Mr. Bussel also completed and participated in the Community Emergency Response Training Program of the City of Beverly Hills as well as the Crisis Response Team of the Maple Counseling Center.

Mr. Bussel was among the founding members and served on the boards of Gen. Shimon Erem’s Israel Christian Nexus, the Western Region of Friends of Israel Firefighters and the Israel Institute for Alternative Energy Advancement. He completed the Salvin Leadership Program of the Anti-Defamation League.

Mr. Bussel writes regularly. For the past decade, his weekly columns appeared in print in Israel Jewish Life, Shalom LA, Muslim World Today and Israeli Week. Mr. Bussel’s articles appear on numerous websites, including Canada Free Press, Free Republic, NewsBlaze, SlantRight and OpEdNews. He is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club.

Mr. Bussel received a Master of Science in Operations Research from Stanford …READTHE REST

Thanks to AliHoppe on the G+ Community United We StandOne Nation Under God, I have found out that the U.S, Ambassador to Israel – David Friedman – is publicly taking the stand that U.S. Embassy will be moved from Tel Aviv to the Eternal Capital of the Land of Israel is just a matter of when.

Since the Ambassador supposed to represent the agenda of the U.S. government, it warms my heart that President Trump has not given up on this campaign promise that has actually been mandated by the U.S. Congress.

U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman said the Trump administration will move the American embassy in the country to Jerusalem, saying it is not a matter of “if, but when,” according to remarks offered in a new interview.

President Donald Trump promised early on in his campaign for office that he would finally move the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which Israel considers its capital.

The issue has been shrouded in controversy since it is longstanding U.S. policy not to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital so as not to prejudge the outcome of peace negotiations with the Palestinians.

Trump has promised to move the embassy as one of his first declarations in office, but that was derailed following opposition by the State Department and a renewed push to get the Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table.

While Trump administration officials have said the embassy move is still being reviewed, Friedman told Erick Stakelbeck, director of Christians United for Israel’s Watchman Project, in an exclusive interview that the U.S. embassy is certain to be relocated during Trump’s tenure in office.

“The embassy will move. It’s not if, but when,” Friedman told Stakelbeck in an interview set to be broadcast on the TBN network. “I am convinced that during his term, the United States will recognize Jerusalem as the undivided and eternal capital of Israel.”

Host Erick Stakelbeck sits down with the U.S. Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, at his residence in Herziliya to discuss strengthening U.S./Israel relations, Jerusalem, Iran and more. Plus, the harrowing story of the forgotten Jewish refugees of the Middle East is recounted.

Adam Kredo is senior writer for theWashington Free Beacon. Formerly an award-winning political reporter for the Washington Jewish Week, where he frequently broke national news, Kredo’s work has been featured in outlets such as the Jerusalem Post, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, and Politico, among others. He lives in Maryland with his comic books. His Twitter handle is @Kredo0. His email address iskredo@freebeacon.com.

“How stands the city on this winter night? More prosperous, more secure, and happier than it was eight years ago. But more than that: After 200 years, two centuries, she still stands strong and true on the granite ridge, and her glow has held steady no matter what storm. And she’s still a beacon, still a magnet for all who must have freedom, for all the pilgrims from all the lost places who are hurtling through the darkness, toward home.”

—Ronald Reagan, Farewell Address, January 11, 1989

The Washington Free Beacon is a privately owned, for-profit online newspaper that began publication on February 7, 2012. Dedicated to uncovering the stories that the powers that be hope will never see the light of day, the Free Beacon produces in-depth investigative reporting on a wide range of issues, including public policy, government affairs, international security, and media. Whether it’s exposing cronyism, finding out just who is shaping our domestic and foreign policy and why, or highlighting the threats to American security and peace in a dangerous world, the Free Beacon is committed to serving the public interest by reporting news and information that is not being fully covered by other news organizations.

The Beacon’s chairman is Michael Goldfarb. Its editor in chief is Matthew Continetti. Sonny Bunch is the executive editor. Bill Gertz is senior editor.

Yup, I’m a Christian Zionist. As such I grow weary of all the hate-propaganda spewed against Israel and Jews. It’s high time you get a glimpse of the great things that are in Israel that seems overlapped by the hate-Israel crowd.

Ari Bussel takes us on a tour trip of Israel that should make Christians and Jews yearn to visit the Holy Land of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (and not the land of Ishmael or religion-hating Marxists). Since I am more Gentile than Zionist, I added some links that brought me up to date on understanding. Enjoy the read.

Ari included a huge amount of photos in this submission of which I will post some (sorry – not all) at the end of the tour of Israel.

Every time a foreign journalist arrives Israel, he or she ascends to Israel’s capital, Jerusalem, to get the official Press ID Card.

For an entire decade, upon my arrival to Israel, I would do exactly that. I never wandered a bit farther than my destination. I particularly avoided the shopping center next to the Government Press Office building, a clear “destination” for locals.

And yet, just around the hill (for Jerusalem is a City on the Hills), is a world unto its own, an oasis “hidden” in the valley, nestled among the hills.

There the world is gathered, and the Bible comes alive.

Much like in Noah’s time that the animals gathered in twos, entire species so they do not get extinct, so nowadays in the Holy City of Jerusalem.

14 they, and every beast after its kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after its kind, and every fowl after its kind, every bird of every sort.

16 And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God commanded him; and the LORD shut him in.

Visitors to Israel

The best kept secret of the State of Israel is likely not its nuclear arsenal, as this is always reported by “foreign sources.” Nor is it the ingenuity, creativity and innovation of the Jewish mind, for Israel has long been known as “Startup Nation.” There are other well-kept-secrets, but these are all publicly discussed and the global rumor mill around them works non-stop.

Christian pilgrims arrive in droves to Israel to Walk in the Footsteps of Jesus.

Jews arrive here to celebrate a Bar/Bat-Mitzva (reaching adulthood ceremony for boys/girls), to visit family and friends and to witness the miracle of their homeland. The holiest place in Judaism is the Temple Mount and its visible Western Wall.

Young Jews come here on Birthright-Taglit[Blog Editor: Apparently anti-Zionists (aka Leftists & Muslim Apologists) hate the concept of Birthright Taglit] visit for approximately ten days, to get to know their ancestral home and have fun during this process of discovery.

Europeans come here to bask in the sun.

Anarchists and other “human rights” activists come here to demonstrate against the only true Democracy in the entire region, and they are not interested in trying to help the Syrians, Yazidis, Coptic Egyptians, Kurds, those who oppose the Mullahs in Iran and other persecuted and oppressed minorities throughout the Middle East and Africa. Only against Israel they come to fight; nothing else angers or even concerns them.

There are many who come here to get medical treatment (“medical and dental tourism”) for it is relatively inexpensive.

And many academicians and professionals come here for conferences, on cyber security and water, agriculture and emergency medicine, investment opportunities and commerce.

Perceptions of Israel vs. Reality

Those who arrive and have never been to Israel often think of an ultra-orthodox country like Afghanistan, a military country like North Korea, a desert with camels as the main form of transportation or an Apartheid state like South Africa of yesteryears. We often hear of a “Separation Wall” and other non-sense accusations, which add to one’s wrong perceptions of Israel.

Upon arrival, a miracle is discovered, evolving in front of one’s very eyes. A modern country that breathes history. People of all skin-colors. People of various faiths. Freedoms the likes of which one can find no where else in the world. A skyline resembling (almost) that of New York or Hong Kong. Construction springing upwards everywhere. The most magnificent wonders of nature and a man-made oasis in a region otherwise known for suffering from little or no water, very harsh conditions and very few natural resources.

Modernity, art, culture, history, archeology, fun, sun and water, music, travel – all mix into one amazing experience, with honking (a form of speech / conversation in Israel), little patience, no respect to lines or generally to order or orderly behavior added to spice up the mix. It is never boring in Israel; is it a country that kicks, breathes and acts 24/7.

Unlike many of the Arab countries that stretch over enormous portions of land with black gold underneath, where some of the most wondrous construction projects take place, Israel is different.

Here one finds creativity and innovation, where almost every kid and every senior and everyone in-between is engaged in a startup of some sort. And the “exits” one hears about went from hundreds of millions to $15b (the most recent). The imagination is on fire, everyone dreams of the next big exit.

Beyond putting its fantastic minds to practical uses, Israel is the world being pregnant and having its children running and jumping up and down all around. It is the most amazing picture to see and experience, for children here are safe, they are raised on the value of the sanctity of life and being a light unto the nations, of doing good, of not recognizing evil.

Children here are color-blind. They do not differentiate one from the other based on one’s skin color, ethnicity or cultural background. After two thousand years of forced absence, Israelis laugh at the so-called “differences” indicating countries of origin (Yemen, Iraq, Iran, Poland, Hungary, …). They are all one – indistinguishable family – Israelis!

And children here, out of necessity, all go into the military, where rich and poor alike are treated equally, these and other differences stripped away and just the person remaining, with traits and values (either already acquired or needed to be learned and implemented). They learn to serve and protect, and they become productive members of society.

It is only here in Israel that bad and evil (constant terrorism attacks and the threat of annihilation) is turned into something else, that out of grief and sorrow new branches sprout with ever-growing intensity and strength of being.

It is the home of the Jewish people, the only country in the world that is truly theirs. Here, in the Land of Israel.

Bird Migration

Every year, hundreds of millions of (estimates are at half a billion) birds migrate via Israel’s skies. They do so twice a year, in the Fall to escape the cold in Europe and Asia as they migrate south to Africa, and then in the Spring, as they return northward to their countries of origin.

Many just fly overhead on their way. Others stop for a rest and recharge. Some will stay here several months, either during the winter or during the summer, they like the accommodations so much they actually come back!

In short, Israel is the hub for bird migration, a phenomenon so unique in the world there is only one other place like it – Panama. In Israel three continents meet, Asia, Europe and Africa, whereas in Panama the two Americas.

Flocks traveling together may number in the thousands or even tens of thousands (actually observed), and they add up to convoys numbering hundreds of thousands.

Several years ago, the Ministry of Tourism had invited foreign journalists stationed in Israel to view the migration of the cranes and the Hula Valley “Agamon” tourism park, a world-famous bird-watching site.

Israel is indeed famous for bird-watching and the twice-annual migration of birds, but yet, we are about to discover a secret only few know.

The Biblical Zoo in Jerusalem

So imagine my surprise when I discovered the members of the Tisch Family Zoological Gardens in Jerusalem. I did not expect to meet male Asian elephants (a gift from Thailand), Asiatic lions, Syrian brown bears, red pandas, chimpanzees, entire types of monkeys, penguins, giraffes, zebras, hippopotamuses, parrots, birds of prey, deer and tigers, cheetahs, ostriches, Nile crocodile, and so many more animals.

One can see them in their natural “habitats.” One can see them being fed, or just read the menu of what they eat each day. One can take the trolley (warning: no space, there are so many kids), or just walk around. The hustle and bustle of the city around disappear, and one journeys to Africa or “Down Under,” to the Amazons or to the Sahara desert. In fact, I realized that I can now “travel” to Africa and still continue to donate blood (it is otherwise prohibited, but not if one never leaves Israel!).

The place is so enormous yet manageable. There is so much to see and experience, that one remains breathless. As if the entire world has come here, to Noah’s Ark, to the Biblical Zoo in Jerusalem, to say “Welcome! Cherish Us! Celebrate with Us! Protect Us!”

Indeed, only in Zion Jerusalem.

So during your next trip, come see Lemur Land, Australian or South American Yard, the West Side Story Exhibit or the Bible Land Wildlife Preserve. You will need a ticket (approximately $12), and you will not regret it. Or, you may want to make a very special repeat, or a first ever, trip to Israel, just for this purpose!

Facts and Figures

The Jerusalem Biblical Zoo was originally established in 1940 by Zoology Prof. Aharon Shulov of the Hebrew University. It has since moved several times until it opened in 1993 in its current location.

The Zoo is home to more than 2,500 mammals, birds, reptiles and fish belonging to some 250 species.

The animals at the zoo are native to the land of Israel that are mention in the Bible, many of which have become extinct in the wild, alongside species from all over the world, many of which are endangered.

The zoo is spread over 250 dunks (roughly 62 acres). The route inside is about two kilometers (1.25 miles) long. It is shaded, comfortable and wheelchair-accessible. Benches and water fountains are aplenty.

The zoo is opened seven days a week (although the Zoo Train does not operate on Jewish holidays and Saturdays).

The Jerusalem Biblical Zoo is administered as a non-profit organization and works in partnership with many conservation groups. It is a partner in global conservation efforts to save endangered species.

Ari Bussel is Vice President of Operations at Saybrex International, a privately held family business specializing in the distribution of fine wines and spirits. He is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the company and has held various positions in the company since 1993.

Prior to joining Saybrex, Mr. Bussel served as First Lieutenant in the Center for Systems Analysis at General Headquarters of the Israel Defense Forces, where he led the implementation of the Logistics War Doctrine in the Computerized Wargame Program.

Mr. Bussel is involved in a variety of philanthropic and civic activities. Mr. Bussel completed the Team Beverly Hills Leadership Program and served on the Environmental Sustainability Topic Committee of the City of Beverly Hills. He was a member of the Steering Committees of former Beverly Hills Mayor MeraLee Goldman and the current Beverly Hills City Treasurer, the Hon. Eliot Finkel. Mr. Bussel also completed and participated in the Community Emergency Response Training Program of the City of Beverly Hills as well as the Crisis Response Team of the Maple Counseling Center.

Mr. Bussel was among the founding members and served on the boards of Gen. Shimon Erem’s Israel Christian Nexus, the Western Region of Friends of Israel Firefighters and the Israel Institute for Alternative Energy Advancement. He completed the Salvin Leadership Program of the Anti-Defamation League.

Mr. Bussel writes regularly. For the past decade, his weekly columns appeared in print in Israel Jewish Life, Shalom LA, Muslim World Today and Israeli Week. Mr. Bussel’s articles appear on numerous websites, including Canada Free Press, Free Republic, NewsBlaze, SlantRight and OpEdNews. He is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club.

Mr. Bussel received a Master of Science in Operations Research from Stanford …READ THE REST